DAWN creates a symphonic prog with a vintage sound, inspired by the British bands of the seventies. Between 2005 and 2008, DAWN plays several live performances: opening for KANSAS and FISH, playing at the "Montreux Prog Nights" festival they created, at the Progsol (Switzerland) and Prog Sud (France) festivals.

Recorded in November 2007, "Loneliness" is DAWN's first studio effort after a promising demo. This album is about life: dawn and dusk, ups and downs. This record is well balanced, featuring short tracks as well as longer ones.

Interesting enough for us so I got in touch with the band for their story..... so far. Julien answered my questions.

##########################################

When was Dawn formed and do you have any
background from other bands ?

The early years were from 1997 to 2003. Julien
(bass) and me were in the same school. We started
together. The music was not good but we had a lot of energy to
compose and improve.

For me, Dawn officially started in 2005, when
music became more serious. At this time, Nicolas (keyboards) joined
the band and brought a lot of new energy.Why did you choose that name ?

It's
always difficult to explain why... It was just obvious…

Whose bands
were you influenced by ?

Every member has very different taste, but we have
one common point: we love old good prog like King Crimson, Yes,
Genesis, Gentle Giant, Frank Zappa,...

To start with; please give me your (long or brief) thoughts and
lowdowns on your only album to this date Loneliness from
2007This
album, particularly for me, was very important. During so many years,
we had never recorded a real CD (except two demos...). I felt: we
just wait and wait until the songs are “perfect” (for us!), but
we don’t really understand that we need to record a CD for getting
more experience, and reaching a new level. Now, we are happy about
“Loneliness”, and we can experiment new stuff for the next album.

What were you
up to after the release of Loneliness ?

Just enjoy! No, more seriously, Julien who has
worked less on the artistic, still had
energy to sell the CD. That's one of the strengths of Dawn: everyone
has found its place.You are currently working on a new album. Please tell us more about
this new album.

I can’t say much... We
have already composed a big part of the new songs. This will be the
twin of “Loneliness” but with darker themes, and a bit more
“symphonic” parts.How is the writing and creative
processes in your band ?

The creative process has evolved over time. Now,
we know more about our qualities. Most of the time, I come with
lyrics ideas, some little themes and a global view of the songs (I
always draw songs as graphs) then Nicolas arranges parts of the
songs, then we discuss and try again until it work.How would you describe your music and which bands would you compare
your music with ?

We don’t
really compare our music with others. We just use old sounds
(Mellotron, Hammond, …) we love. We
like progressive rock because we are free: no time limit, no need to
please, just do what you want! We are sensitive to the melody,
symphonic arrangements, (power or calm), atmospheres. To me, every
music in every style has just one goal: to touch the sky, with joy or
tears. Speak directly with the soul, the rest is just details.Besides of the new album, what is your plans for this year and next
year ?

Compose and play together as long as possible!

What is your five favourite Swiss albums of all time ?

Everyone has his favorite album, but none the
same… I would say: it’s better to hear English rock!Anything you want to add to this interview ?

We are very proud, happy and even surprised of
the welcome of “Loneliness” and we are very excited to present
the new album, most likely next year.

We work now with a new drummer, Manu Linder, since the release of Loneliness. The band is working on a new album for a long time. We've just sign with US label The Laser's Edge ! Our next album will be released on april 15th. It calls DARKER. It's a 8 tracks album (about 70 min). Here is the tracklist :

You cannot post new topics in this forumYou cannot reply to topics in this forumYou cannot delete your posts in this forumYou cannot edit your posts in this forumYou cannot create polls in this forumYou cannot vote in polls in this forum